Jennifer Stroud
Head of Social Sciences Department, History and Government Instructor
Tel: (805) 646-4343 Ext 137

History, Residential Life
Cultural Geography, Honors US History, AP US Government & Politics, Sheltered US History (ESL)

Year Appointed: 2007


B.A. University of California Santa Cruz
M.A. Santa Barbara College of Oriental Medicine

Jennifer Stroud grew up in Ojai, CA, where she was fortunate to have the opportunity to attend Happy Valley School for four years. Jennifer became passionate about the celebrated diversity and strong community at Happy Valley School (Besant Hill School) initially as a student, which influenced her passion within the university setting. In Jennifer's undergraduate work at UC Santa Cruz, she studied American Studies with an ethnic studies focus and also studied Japanese for four years. After her undergraduate work, Jennifer returned to Ojai to raise her daughter amongst family in Ojai. Upon her return to Southern California, Jennifer continued to explore Asian studies and Chinese medicine and obtained her M.A. in Chinese medicine in 2007.

Jennifer has a strong passion for social-economic change and works with several grassroots organizations. She has volunteered and worked with The Ella Baker Foundation, Santa Cruz Immigration Project, Books not Bars, United Farm Workers, The School at Blair Grocery, and Common Ground Collective to name a few. Her passion for service learning and commitment to change has carried into the Besant Hill Experiential Education program with her repeated trips to New Orleans and Cairo, Egypt. These trips have been designed to inspire students' passion to learn through service to communities in need and developing a greater understanding of these communities' cultures.